Attachable plate and method of making the same



F. a. nAvlsowi ATTACH'ABLE PLATE AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 29, 1920.

1 425 40 PatentedAugfi, 1922.

FRANK navrson, on nosrom iuassaoiausnrrs. 1.

ATTACHABQLE PLATE A vn warrior) or Maxine TIE-IE SAME. i

, T all whom it may concern:

Be it"known that I, FRANK G. DAvIsoN,

a citizen of the United States, and resident of Boston, in the county ofSuffolk and State of'lltlassachusetts, have invented certa'in new anduseful Improvements in Attachable Plates and Methods of Making the Same,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to sheet metal plates employed for the purpose ofexhiblting legible characterson one surface and which have pinsor'so-called feet pro ecting from the other surface to enable the plateto be attached to another member. Such plates are employed for clock andwatch dials, telephone number disks, and. elsewhere such as signs orname plates at the entrance of office buildings.

Plates of the type referred to and most commonly in use aremade of sheetmetal such as copper, to the back of which the pins or feet are securedby soldering. This method of production is expensive and requires greatcare to ensure correct location of said feet.

The object of the present invention isto provide improved attachableplates which,

while having the same appearance as those now in'use, are comparativelylnexpensive and also stronger. With this object in view the inventionconsists in a platehaving pinshaped feet which are integral therewithWithout causing any mutilation of the por tion of the plate whichcarries the usual enamel. i

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate one form of plateconstructed according to my invention Figure 1 is a face view of theblank. as it is shaped when struck from sheet metal.

Figure 2 is a view of the plate fronrthe back thereof after theprojecting portions shown in Figure 1' have been given their finalshape.

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 but as the plate appears afterthe usual enamel coating for hearing legible characters has beenapplied. I

Figure 4 represents a sectlon on line 4-4- of Figure 1 on a largerscale,

Figures 5, 6 and 7 are views similar to Figure 4 but illustratingsuccessive steps in the operation of producing the article shown inFigure 3.

Figure 8 is an enlarged plan view looking Specification of LettersPatent. Pgfl gfitgd fyflg. Application filed May 29, 1920. Serial No.3555,2428. I

in the direction of the arrow 8 in Figure 5. and I, i I

Figure 9 is a perspective: View still further enlarged. illustrating'oneof the integral feet as it appears when the article is in theconditionreadyto be enameled.

S m lar reference characters designate similar parts of the article inall of the Tne plate 12, which maybe of any size or configuratlon'according to the use toviews.

which it is to be put, is stamped or otherwise' cut from, suitable"material such as sheet copper, and whenso madefthe requisite number ofmarginal projections are 4. Each of the integral an intervening narrowedportion or neck 15, and said pro ect1ons are so spaced relaprojectionscom prises a web'13 terminatinginalip la with' formed, such asillustratedin igures 1 and tively to each other, and are ofsuch length II (especially the webs 13) thatwhen they are altered in shape aspresently described-the plate will have the required number of feetextending downwardly therefrom at the proper distance fromthe marginthereof.

After the plate, with its radial projections f as described, has beenformed, the

next step is to roll up the lips 14; and bend them at a right angle tothe. webs13 as shown in Figs. 5 and 8. l The necks 15 permit this to bedonewithout causing any i distortion ,ofthe webs 13 out of their normalflat shape. That is, the rolling up of the portions 14- has no effect onthe portions 13 which remain fiat, C

The next-step is to bend down the webs 13 cl ose. to'the line where'theymeet the margin of the plate and continue saidbend ing until thewebs'lie flat against the, back of the plate. This, as shown in Figs.'2,

6 and '9, causes the lips 1a which are now in the shape of substantiallycylindrical pins, to project from the back of the plate to form feet bywhich the plate may be attached to another member. The final step is theusualone ofcoating the plate with enamel as indicated at 16 in Figs. 7and 3. The enamel on the face ofthe plate, of course, will usually carrythe requisite numerals or other designations not necessary toillustrate, but the enamel on the back of the plate serves to aid inholding the webs 13 in the flat positions'to which they have been bent.I may also, or alternatively,

employ other means for securing the webs i in their fiat positions, suchas by soldering, but this is rarely advantageous.

It will now be understood that the plate is readily and cheaply madewith its feet accurately located, and that the finished. article isstrong since the feet are integral with the Dlate itself. And animportant feature is that the face of the plate is unmutilated and istherefore capable of being smoothly coated with enamel without requiringany intermediate plate between the plate 12 and the enamel.

It is also to be understood that I do not limit myself to making thearticle either by hand or by machinery, nor to the particular orderwhich I have described for the successive steps taken during theoperation of producing the article.

Having now described my invention, I claim:

'1. A plate having marginal portions bent inwardly therefrom and rigidlysecured flatwise against the rear surface of the plate, said. mar inalportions having their tips extending at a right angle to the plate topr,ovide attaching feet.

2. A plate having a continuous unmutilated surface and having marginalportions bent inwardly and secured fiatwise against the plate, saidmarginal portions having them tips, extend ng at a. right angle to theplate to provlde attaching feet.

5. The method of making a sheet metal article having attaching feet,consisting in forming a blank comprising a plate having marginalextensions, then converting the outer portions of the extensionstosubstan tially cylindricala form and bending said outer portionsupwardly relatively to the face of the plate, and then bending the entire extension in thereverse direction to position to locate thecylindrical portions. at the back of theplate.

6. The method of. making a sheet metal article having attaching feet,consisting in forming a blank comprising. a. plate having marginalextensions, and then bending said extensions to convert, their:extremities into attaching feet with intermediate portions in contactwith the body of the plate.

in testimony whereof I have aflixedymy signature.

FRANK. e. Dawson

